Arts and Crafts

These spooky little skeletons make terrific Halloween decorations, and are easy enough for everyone in the family to make. You've probably got everything you need to make them lying around the house, too. Here's what you'll need to create your skeletons:

• Black construction paper (8 1/2 x 11")
• Scissors
• Hole punch (optional)
• Cotton swabs
• Cotton balls
• White glue

Cut construction paper sheets in half. Near the top of a half sheet, glue a cotton ball for the skeleton's skull. Then take five swabs and arrange them to form the skeleton's body: one for the spine and two each for the arms and the legs. You can gently bend the swabs for the arms and legs to give them some shape.

Take two swabs and cut them in half with the scissors—these are the skeleton's ribs. Glue them in place on the spine just below the arms.

Punch some holes in a piece of scrap black construction paper. The little circles from the hole punch can be glued to the cotton ball skull as eye sockets. You can also cut out circles or other shapes for the eyes. Cut a mouth shape out of black paper and glue it on the cotton ball below the eyes.

Handmade holiday crafts make great gifts, so make sure you check out Studio4Art's creative Saturday workshops in November and December. All Saturday workshops take place from 11 am to 12:30 pm.

• Create an imaginative clay gingerbread house on November 5 and December 3 ($40). It will last a life time and is sure to become a family heirloom. Many families come to this workshop year after year and create their own villages! Begin your house with slab construction, then add clay molded to look like candy and end with a finished piece that is sure to dazzle.
• On November 12 make cards with handmade papers, fabric, sewing machines, block printing, printmaking and stamps ($20). Your cards will be beautiful enough to be framed! Each student receives 6 cards to create.
• Make your own clay Christmas tree ornaments on November 19 ($30). It's amazing what you can create with a pound of clay! Creating and glazing will be completed in this one-day workshop. Families are welcome to work together.  Extra clay is available at additional cost.

Novato's Studio4Art celebrates not only its four-year anniversary, but also the opening of its new Annex, located directly behind the main studio! This new space will be used for parties, summer and holiday camps, workshops, and classes for children two years and up. The Annex will also serve as a gallery for student-created artwork and student art shows. The main studio will continue to be the place for drop-in art sessions as well as the retail area where customers can continue to find quality art supplies and unique art gifts.

Studio4Art has been serving Novato and surrounding communities in Marin and Sonoma County since it was opening in September of 2008 by owner Kebby McInroy. Studio4Art has maintained a specialized niche within the community, serving schools, families, and civic groups such as scout troops and dens. Studio4Art continues to advocate for children of all ages and their creative needs by offering affordable and quality hands-on classes, summer and holiday camps and workshops, and drop-in art sessions covering a variety of media from acrylic, watercolor, and oil painting, to sewing, wheel-throwing, clay hand-building, silk screening, block printing and mosaic-making.

My five-year-old daughter must love the book The Apple Doll by local Bay Area author and illustrator Elisa Kleven (40 pages, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2007). She checked it out from the library no fewer than two times last year and got it again a few days ago. It's easy to see why it's one of her favorites: The Apple Doll is a charming book, and it's another great read-aloud story (with an added activity) for the fall season, especially if you happen to have an apple tree nearby.

The Apple Doll tells the story of Lizzy, a shy little girl who loves the apple tree in her yard and ends up making a doll out of an apple and twigs that she names "Susanna". She ends up getting teased by other kids for carrying around her apple-and-sticks creation at school. I know this sounds a little odd but the book handles the situation in a much better and sweeter way than I'm describing it here. Ultimately, Lizzy's mom takes the now long-in-the-tooth Susanna and makes an apple doll out of her, which inspires a class apple doll project and friendships and happiness ensue.

Our friends at Studio 4 Art in downtown Novato are offering a 10% discount on drop-in art-making sessions for Marin Mommies readers! Simply mention that you heard about this deal on Marin Mommies to get your discount.

Drop-in hours at Studio 4 Art are from 10 am to 5:30 pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and 10 am to 8 pm on Wednesday. For children ages 4 and up, it's a perfect activity on a rainy day, or any day for that matter. Children can choose from a variety of media to work in, including painting, mosaics, drawing, sewing, clay, or wheel-throwing. Studio 4 Art's friendly and knowledgable instructors are close as hand for questions, advice, and help. Children have fun and, more importantly, leave with a great piece of art and sense of accomplishment.

Valentine's Day is coming tomorrow, and with it the classroom ritual of exchanging Valentine's Day cards. Since many of us are budget minded these days, you'll probably appreciate the free Valentine's Day cards available at numerous online destinations, especially since Valentine's Day sometimes seems to be one of those holidays that exist mainly to suck the money right out of your wallet.

To get your free printable cards, simply follow one of our links below, select the designs your children want, download, and print. Pretty nifty. We downloaded and printed a few, and they're really just as good as the ones you get in the store, as long as you don't mind cutting them out yourself. But that's all part of the fun, isn't it?

Kids can create a holiday heirloom for your family at one of Studio 4 Art's great hands-on workshops this season.

On Saturday, November 20, create your own clay ornaments from 10 am to noon. Use Studio 4 Art's wide selection of tools, footprints, handprints, and even dog prints to make unique and beautiful holiday ornaments. $20 cost includes 2 pounds of clay, firing, and glazes. Additional clay available for an additional cost. This workshop is suitable for participants ages 2 to adult.

By popular demand, Studio 4 Art will hold a second clay gingerbread house workshop on Saturday, November 27 from 10 am to noon. Construct a gingerbread house that will last a lot longer this holiday season—make it out of clay! This workshop has become a holiday tradition at the studio, and it's a fun project to work on as a family. Workshop costs $40 and is for ages 5–adult. Gingerbread houses will be fired in their kiln; you can come back and paint yours with glaze for no additional charge.

Studio 4 Art is located in downtown Novato at 1133 Grant Avenue, at 2nd Street. For more information on these and other workshops and creative activities, call them at (415) 596-5546 or visit www.studio4art.net.

Recycled Art birthday parties are a combination of art, science and storytelling for kids ages 2 and up. Children learn to look at familiar objects in new ways as they become stewards of the land. Partygoers will brainstorm ways to turn trash into treasures and learn about the world around us. Not only are these workshops a great way to celebrate a birthday, they are also a great way to celebrate amazing "Planet eARTh"!

Parties are offered in-home or at your birthday party venue, as well as through the Fairfax Community Center. Packages start at $125 for 1 hour with a 10 student maximum. Ongoing classes are also held at the Fairfax Community Center for kids ages 2–4, as well as through the Mill Valley Parks and Rec Center for elementary age children.

Visit www.lieshaeberst.com for more information or call Liesha at (415) 513-3626 to reserve your party.

This weekend, Target (you know, that place where you buy diapers and bathroom cleaner and toys and the occasional dress or shirt) presents Arts & Wonder, a free family event with free general admission to six of San Francisco's leading museums and free art activities and performances.

This weekend-long marathon of free family fun kicks off Friday, July 16, 2010 from 5–8:45 pm at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park, where you can turn Target's canine mascot Bullseye into a work of Andy Warhol-inspired "Pup" art and watch a ballet performance celebrating the work of Impressionist painter Edgar Degas. General admission and activities and performances are free, but if you want to see the Birth of Impressionism exhibition (highly recommended!) you'll have to get a special timed ticket—$15 for adults, $10 for children 6–17, and free for kids 5 and under.